March 30, I purchased a pre-owned 2007 Chevy Malibu. The unit called, (DIC) "Digital Information Center" in the middle of the dash was so dim that I could not get any use from it. I didn't pay attention before I purchased the car because I though it was part of the CD player which I have no use for. I tried the light control knob under the steering column to no avail -- the only way I could read the display was to have the car in a dark space or at night.

A week or so ago, I was driving through a heavy rain, I noticed the display was considerably brighter than it had been.

When I got the book and found out what this was, I would like to have use of it. I returned to the dealer from whom I purchased it. The salesman tested it and told me they couldn't remedy the situation and it was my problem. I called the local Chevy dealer and talked with the shop foreman. He said it would "probably need the whole unit replaced." I asked for a "ballpark" guess as to the cost, and he told me "about $300."

I would like to have use of this, but my available funds were largely depleted with the purchase of the car. Any advice?

DrivenDaily

05-27-2010, 02:52 AM

I don't have access to an '07 model and mine's the next generation with the DIC under the speedo so I'm at a bit of a loss.

Does the dimmer control work on the rest of the dash? Do any of the DIC functions seem to be displaying correctly, just dimly? If there's a light sensor on the dash, try covering it in the daytime to make it dark (may take a minute or two) - does that make the display brighten, and/or does the speedo also brighten?

Answers to those questions might lead you to a solution other than replacing the DIC. Hope this helps.

Starship

05-27-2010, 10:09 AM

The DIC is integrated into the radio on '07. The thing is I don't see how "driving through a heavy rain" can make the display "considerably brighter." $300 is for replacing the CD radio but the problem may be beyond the radio.

tk6214

03-01-2011, 07:41 AM

The DIC is integrated into the radio on '07. The thing is I don't see how "driving through a heavy rain" can make the display "considerably brighter." $300 is for replacing the CD radio but the problem may be beyond the radio.

the driving through the rain is due to the abmiant light sensor, my car is doing the exact thing '07 LS model, I found this thread for advice but no dice.

Lucky

03-02-2011, 01:59 AM

the driving through the rain is due to the abmiant light sensor, my car is doing the exact thing '07 LS model, I found this thread for advice but no dice.

Thank you for your post. "No Dice!" has been all the help I got. I'm old and uneducated - - is the "ambient light sensor" the little clear bubble in the center of the dash? In desperation, I covered that thing on a bright sunny day and that didn't make any difference. However driving at night or an overcast day the DIC is bright and does good. The local Chevy service tech said to repair it he'd have to remove the whole works and put in everything new, and quoted me a minimum of $300.

On the 2008-up models there's a feature called "Parade Dimming" that allows the headlights to be on during the daytime but keeps the dash at daytime brightness so you can see it, and the brightness is not controllable with the dimmer knob. If it's dark outside and the lights are on, the dash is dimmed and controllable via the dimmer.

If it's dark out and you manually turn off the lights the dash will brighten to daytime level.

On your 2007 it may function the same. Once the car has started try turning the lights off manually. If that doesn't do the trick, try pulling the "IP Illum" fuse - for the instrument panel only. Should be a 2A fuse, maybe 5A. Either of these ideas will only cost you time and effort. The next step will be to see if you can access the plug on the Ambient Light Sensor (yes, it's under the clear bubble in the center) and possibly using a resistor or a straight wire to mimic the sensor detecting daylight or not.